


I'll Find You

by Demenior, mademoisellePlume



Series: Tomorrow I’ll Switch the Beat [6]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-12-04 17:02:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11559564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Demenior/pseuds/Demenior, https://archiveofourown.org/users/mademoisellePlume/pseuds/mademoisellePlume
Summary: Being stranded in the universe is an experience that no one should experience. Space is cold, dark and endless. But it's not hopeless.orPidge Holt becomes a professional mime.





	I'll Find You

Space is… huge. It’s infinite, endless, expansive. It’s beautiful and chaotic and uncharted and exotic and terrifying and awesome, in the biblical sense. It inspires awe. 

Space is also really lonely. 

The Green Lion has been at rest for some time, having landed safely without Pidge awake to guide it. Tumbling through a corrupted wormhole results in enough g-force to knock a kid out. Who knew? They aren't sure how much time has passed, as they’ve landed in some sort of nebula cloud that is throwing off all of Green’s sensors. 

Green, also, seems to be really messed up because they aren’t responding either. It makes the loneliness thing a little worse.

Pidge, admittedly, takes a while to get going. First of all, their head feels like it’s going to explode and so going back to sleep just keeps seeming like a great option. Secondly, it’s… it’s a little scary to not know what’s out there. Green can’t even detect if there is or isn’t any signs of life, and it can’t send or receive any transmissions. Which is going to be an issue if Pidge is ever going to find the others.

Their armour appears to be intact. The integrity of the helmet remains uncompromised, and as such, Pidge decides they’re ready for their first spacewalk. 

Despite being in space for so… many ticks, Pidge hasn’t taken the opportunity to free-fly around in space. Look, space is cool and all (see above descriptor: awe inspiring), but Pidge has zero interest in being lost in it. The biggest drive to get out here was to find their family and go home.

Considering the fact that there’s no debris or dust flying around Green from the impact-- assuming there is even dust here to disturb-- Pidge is hoping that the gravity here is fairly earth-like and will keep them from hurtling off into the great unknown if they misstep. Not that they plan to trip or anything, but it’s always best to be prepared for the worst. 

There’s wire in the belt of the armour-- which Pidge is sure is meant to be some sort of anchoring system. It’s too tough to cut for it to be for just anything. They secure it to the inside of Green before opening the airlock and venturing out into the unknown. 

 

It’s… it’s pretty bleak. 

The initial response was more along the lines of: look at me now! But it was quickly overshadowed with: I don’t like this place.

As Pidge tested the gravity and ran a quick survey on the surrounding area using their armour’s limited scanner. Nothing living, no poisonous gasses, but not enough atmosphere for Pidge to breathe normally without the helmet. Which meant they had to work fast before they had to replenish their oxygen. That was something that always freaked Pidge out. The idea of running out of air and being too far away to get back to safety. Training courses in the Garrison had helped give some order and structure to the routine, but the fear remained. 

They kept themselves tethered to Green, just in case and activated their jetpack to start scouring the lion. A lot of things were messed up, and poor Green was going to need a bath. And a lot of tune-ups. They were going to spend a lot of quality time together, and really? Pidge was pretty excited about that. 

That didn’t mean it wasn’t hard to look at Green all battered and beaten from the fight with Zarkon’s fleet to rescue Allura. Their lion was brave and cunning and ruthless, and quick and deadly. Pidge adored their lion, and the hard work they did together. Green might be made up of mechanics and systems that Pidge could decipher, tamper with and improve on, but they were alive in a way that Pidge wasn’t quite ready to explain just yet. They were a good friend. 

“I’ll fix you up, better than before,” Pidge promised. Still no response from Green. That was starting to get worrisome. 

First things first: get Green online, and then figure out where to fly off to next. 

Pidge lands next to a slightly discoloured stripe on Green’s back. It was where the metal hull had been breached, then patched and welded shut. Almost like a scar. It wasn’t a repair Pidge had done. They wonder if Green ever misses their old Paladins. 

The wires Pidge is looking for are at the back of Green’s neck, where the hindbrain and the start of the spinal column would be if Green was a mammalian lion. The panels are all intact, which is good. But also bad. Good because there aren't huge amounts of damage, but bad because it means there is internal damage. Internal damage is going to be hard to assess. And deal with. 

First things first. Climb a mountain one step at a time, just like dad always said. Says. No, said is appropriate. But depressing. Use the grammatically incorrect says. Dad always says. And is going to say again. That feels better.

It takes time to solder through the outer hull using their bayard. Pidge is scared about accidentally hurting Green and they keep pausing in their work to check over their shoulder. Nothing like being alone in an isolated pocket of space to make one paranoid. 

It takes much longer than anticipated to get through Green’s outer hull. They have to retreat back inside to replenish their oxygen before they can continue. It’s weird how quiet everything is, and how that makes their hands shake. Even though Pidge spends a lot of time on their own, absorbed in their interests, they’ve never actually been alone like this. There had always been family and friends, or some blend of the two categories, around to provide a background hum of life. Right now there’s nothing, not even Green.  
They don’t let themselves stew for too long. Getting scared-- not that they’re _scared_ scared, but like, the principle of the thing-- isn't going to help them get the task done. It’s embarrassing to be freaking out about being alone but it’s so dark and quiet that now all Pidge can think about are all the horror movies they’ve seen or paranormal encounters they’ve read detailing what happens to people alone in the dark. 

And it’s not dark, like night time dark, it’s still light. But it’s a murky, greenish haze sort of light. It just adds to the unease and helps fuel all the bad thoughts Pidge is starting to have. This isn’t a good green. 

They carefully let out their tether as they return to the hole they made in Green’s hull, and manage to dislodge the panel on their own. The gravity here must be a little less than on earth, because Pidge would normally have had a lot of trouble with something this size. That, or, maybe all this exercise and training Allura makes them do actually is good for something. If they’re not careful they’ll all end up looking like Shiro.

The thought makes Pidge snort with laughter. That feels good. It’s a burst of warmth in their chest and it keeps them smiling. They miss their friends, their team. And they’re going to find them again. 

It takes another trip to replenish their oxygen before they find the cables that had been knocked loose. For how grand Green is, it’s humbling to remember that it’s a machine and can be taken out by something so simple as wires being unplugged. Pidge is going to figure out a way to keep this from happening again. If this happened in a fight that’d be pretty awful. Plus, when was the last time someone really gave Green a thorough tuning? Pidge is going to clean up and fix up every inch of them, from the inside out. 

Green lights up with an echoing hum around them. Their connection to Green wakes up as well. Lance calls it ‘magic’. Pidge calls it ‘a higher level of neurophysical communication that humans aren't quite capable of reaching on their own’, to which Pidge can practically hear Lance saying ‘that sounds like a fancy way of saying ‘magic’’. Shut up Lance.

Pidge feels a million times better with Green running. They're still alone, stranded with a damaged ship in some random part of the universe, but they feel less alone with the Lion humming so loud it feels like it's purring. 

Pidge climbs back inside the Green Lion, and happily takes off their helmet once the cockpit is sealed. They lean back in their chair with a sigh of relief.

“We’re back in business,” Pidge declares to no one in particular. They like to imagine that Green hums a little louder in response. If this was a movie, this would be the start of a kick-ass montage set to some sort of rock n roll; of Pidge fixing up Green. Sadly no music plays.

“Okay,” Pidge says after a moment of feeling silly, “step one: get you fixed up. Step two: install some speakers. I bet you’d love Earth music.”

 

Step 3 is to actually have Green functional enough to fly off in at least some direction. And at worst, be able to send out messages so they can start locating the others. Except step three, being directly related to step one and slightly more important than step two so it was bumped up in the order of actionable decisions, is not going at all to plan. 

Pidge has done seven space walks by the time they figure out the problem. It’s nothing in Green’s wiring (that they can find, yet), and it has entirely to do with the power source. In all their meddling, Pidge has come to understand that the lions are capital-W-Weird. They’re not normal robots-- not that Pidge is entirely certain what a normal robot is-- but some of their parts don’t add up the way an electromechanical system should. 

Like the fact that Green has a heartbeat. It has to be a running engine of some sort, but it feels like a heartbeat. And it’s beating very, very slow. 

Which lead Pidge to finally check the obvious and discovers that Green has no power left. Just the emergency reserves to keep Pidge alive. 

That’s only incredibly terrifying. 

Pidge feels frozen in fear, and for a moment, thinks of how Hunk gets so scared that he starts crying all the time. And then he presses on. Sure he needs a lot of encouragement, but he soldiers on. 

This is just another problem on a problem, and Pidge is good at problem-solving. They did enough word puzzles and riddles with Dad and Matt to know how to think outside the box. 

If Pidge can’t boost the power cells on their own, then they need to call for help. Long-range communication isn’t possible right now: that will take up all of their energy and they can’t be sure that the other will be able to get to them on time. 

A short-range SOS, on the other hand, won’t use up as much energy. The trick is hoping that someone is close enough to hear it, and that this nebula isn’t causing too much interference.

And that they aren’t Galra, Pidge realizes. That could be trouble. 

Sendak’s and Haxus’s snarling faces still haunt the edges of Pidge’s dreams. Galra had seemed beatable-- and they still were! Pidge knows this!-- but when it was just their ships versus Voltron? They were nothing. But coming face-to-face with those monsters? They were so much bigger and scarier than Pidge could have imagined. And stinkier. The castle had smelled musky for days after Sendak’s infiltration. 

It's a tough choice either way. But Pidge needs help. They're going to have to risk the short-range. Heck! Maybe one of the others landed nearby?  
It doesn't mean they send the SOS immediately. There's planning. What to do when someone comes? How to decide if they're friendly? If they are: great! If they aren't: what then?  
If they're Galra then they'll want Green. Loathe as Pidge is to admit it, if they let the Galra take Green it could give them an opportunity to sneak on board. Then they can be somewhere where Pidge can make a plan and not be in fear of dying. Of dying from outer space at least. 

Okay that's worst case scenario.

Pidge hits the signal. Sending out a short-range SOS and hopes someone is listening. They watch the power in Green’s reserves deplete.

Actually, they realize, the worst case scenario is that no one hears them.

 

After an hour Pidge dares to send out another SOS. The reserves have enough power for approximately 72 hours of life support. Pidge has used up quite a bit of oxygen in their space walks, and with every signal the support decreases. 

The best way to conserve energy is to stay still. They turn off any of Green’s non-essential supports, keeping the lights in the cockpit dimmed and their radio open and set to receive any signal. There is a lot of interference. It’s more than likely that the boosted SOS isn't getting out at all. 

Green is a hum in the back of their mind. Comforting, but wheezy and raspy at times. The purr is more like a slow breath and it leaves Pidge waiting nervously to count if it's going to be the last.

After this, they're going to have to space out how often they do boosted signals. Maybe put it to two hours. Or three. If they had any hope of making a long-range call, it's gone now. Even if Green had enough energy to boost a signal that powerful, it would have depleted all of the life support energy and then some. Pidge would be dead by now.

Pidge draws their knees to their chest. They have to conserve as much energy as possible. Someone's going to come for them.

There’s more they can do to try and conserve energy. It's less than ideal, but it will help a lot: they turn down the heat. 

 

It’s been six hours. It’s not cold enough to shiver, and yet it feels like ice has settled in Pidge’s bones. They did fine in all the simulations at the Garrison-- it was agonizing to just be sitting still but they managed-- and yet being in the moment, in the Real Deal, is something completely different. 

They’re afraid. They’re afraid in ways that they never knew they could be afraid. In ways they can’t quite name and they’re too scared to try and name. They don’t want to think about it. 

Green’s lights are dim, and getting dimmer. The sickly-green light of the nebula creeps in and tints everything in its colour. Pidge has been drifting in and out of time. Not sleeping, because they’re still exhausted from the fight with Zarkon, but zoning out with no concept of time passing until they come back to themself and glance at the clock. It keeps ticking away. The radio stays silent. 

Pidge thinks about the others. Where they must be. What they must be thinking. They’re all looking for each other, they have to be. They’re all going to get back to each other, and then they’re going to realize that Pidge is missing. And they’ll come looking. 

But how are the others going to find them, without Pidge? Pidge would have made a program that would chart the most probable destination outcomes for their own expulsion from the wormhole, and would have sent the team in those directions. That would be their best chance at scouring the universe. Which is so big, and so empty. The others aren’t going to know what to do, and even if they get close, what if they’re not in range when Pidge sends an SOS?

They can’t find Pidge, without Pidge’s help.

Not like Pidge has been able to find the people that really matter, they think. Matt and Dad are still out there somewhere. And while Pidge has been playing hero, the Galra are doing who-knows-what to them? Pidge hasn’t seen the full extent, but they see the scars on Shiro’s arms, on his neck, his face, his fingers. They’ve even seen the huge one that time his shirt rode up when he pulled off his vest-- the scar that goes all the way down his stomach that’s so big and full of scar tissue that Pidge had to look away before they got caught staring. Scars like that are left from someone trying to rip your guts out. And maybe succeeding. 

And that’s what Pidge has left Matt and Dad to. They’re still there, trapped with the Galra and the Galra’s sick and twisted games. And no matter what Pidge does it’s not going to be enough because the universe is so big and so empty that there’s no way Pidge can find them. It’s pointless, it’s hopeless, and Pidge is going to die here and leave Matt and Dad for dead and Mom isn’t ever going to know what happened to them-- any of them-- and it’s all Pidge’s fault!

HRRMMMM

There’s a surge of energy from Green that startles Pidge enough to shriek. The light’s flare to a blinding intensity, the entire ship shakes, and the engine sounds like an incredibly disapproving growl. The power levels flux, rising sharply and then dropping back down to where it was before. Pidge is shaking from the adrenaline rush. A gear must have slipped, that’s all. But even still, it feels like Green is trying to snap Pidge out of their thoughts. That’s a much nicer image. Lance would think something like that. 

A giggle escapes them. They’ve been alone so long they’re starting to attach emotions and human personality traits to machines. They’re going crazy!

It’s going to be a fun story to share when they get back. 

The timer beeps. It’s time to send another SOS. 

The power levels drop lower. The lights dim again.

 

Hours pass.

It’s cold enough that they start shivering. Their suit maintains body temperature naturally, but they want to conserve that battery as long as they can. They’re keeping the heat manually off for as long as possible. 

They’re trying to sleep now, if only for something to do. But they’re afraid of missing anything that might be a responding call. It’s a terrible battle between boredom, practicality and the potential slide into a never-ending panic spiral, and so dozing is the best they can come up with. 

They’ve found a particularly cozy way of curling up in the seat, head nestled just so and legs tucked just right so they feel warm enough-- when they hear it. 

A crackle-- a voice-- on the radio. There’s a lot of interference.

“--received-- identify-- please--”

Pidge leaps for the radio, and turns up the range. It drains the remaining power faster, but they need to be heard so that they can be found.

“Hello? Hi! Yes-- this is Pidge. I mean, yes, I sent the SOS, do you copy? My ship is damaged and life support is draining. I need help immediately.”

They stop, holding their breath. A moment passes. Another. Why isn’t anyone responding? Oh-- wait-- they didn’t say ‘over’. Is that why? Rookie mistake.

Pidge is about to add on to their reply when the radio comes to life again.

“Who-- -ou? W-- damage?”

Pidge bites their lip. They have no idea who the other person is. They don’t even know if they’re Galra. They boost the energy for the radio further. They don't look at the battery dropping. This is their only chance, they need to get help now.

“My name is Pidge Holt… I…” well, either way, they’ll know if this person is friend or foe, “I’m a Paladin of Voltron. My ship was badly damaged in battle with Zarkon’s main fleet.”

The radio is silent again. Pidge waits with baited breath. Are these Galra supporters? Are they going to try and take Pidge hostage? Are they against the Galra? 

“--against Zarkon? And survived?”

Pidge can’t tell if they’re scandalized in a good or bad way. But at least the signal is coming through clearly now. Well, clearer.

“You… you say that like it’s a bad thing,” Pidge says nervously. 

Laughter cracks over the radio. 

“Pidge Holt, Paladin of Voltron and fighter of tyranny. I am happy to call anyone who battles the Emperor and survives a friend.”

Pidge can’t help the smile splitting their face.

“We are--”

The radio cuts out. The lights go out. Green loses power.

The suit senses the absence of life-supporting measures and activates. Pidge has oxygen before they can even realize they were about to start suffocating. Their fingers and toes get warm. It’s a surreal sensation for how numb and stunned they feel. The only light comes from the lit panels on their suit and the fading green haze from outside.

Pidge had the radio boosted too high. It was draining energy too fast. They had just started to feel warm, to feel like things were about to get better. Just speaking to another living creature felt like a balm to their anxious mind. 

And then it was all ripped away. Pidge almost feels like crying. They don’t even know who or where this other ship is. 

But they said they were friends. 

It’s going to be okay. 

 

They don't know how long they sit in the dark, hoping that the ship is coming for them. The light never fades, but it's not bright and it just puts Pidge on edge. 

They've cried a few tears, and without any way to wipe their face through the helmet now they just feel pathetic and sticky.

They're laying with their eyes closed, trying not to think about the unending emptiness around them. About what it's like to die, or where Dad and Matt are. What Mom thinks-- all alone on earth and no idea where any of her family is. 

A light so bright it goes right through their eyelids startled Pidge awake. 

There's a ship! A ship is coming towards them!

It's so hard to see past the huge spotlight on them, but Pidge doesn't think it's Galra. The Galra would probably use a purple light anyways. They're weird like that.

Pidge manually opens Green’s cockpit hatch, and climbs onto her head. They realize they should wait to see if this is a Galra ship or not-- but caution is thrown to the wind with the hope of surviving.

“Hey! I'm here!” They shout, and wave their arms. Hell, Pidge starts jumping like an idiot too. Someone came! They're going to survive!

The ship lands several yards away, kicking up a lot of dust. Pidge waits on top of Green while the dust settles. Pidge isn’t necessarily well-versed in spacecraft. At least, in spacecraft that isn’t from earth. It’s still kind of mind-blowing to see an actual spaceship landing right in front of them. 

It's… the ship is a bit of a beater. Admittedly Pidge is used to the pristine and high-quality Castle of Lions, but they're pretty sure they can even see rust pockets on this ship. There's damage that's from lasers, though they look faded and old, and marks from rough landings. This is an old ship, but it's endured a lot. Or, the captain can't afford to repair it. That's worrisome.

What if they're scrap collectors? Pidge doesn't want anyone laying a hand on Green’s parts that isn't them.

They called for help, so they don't physically summon their bayard. But they keep the tingle in their fingers that means it's only a thought away. 

They jump off of Green, using their jetpack briefly to slow the fall and then let the weaker gravity do the rest of the slow descent. 

A panel on the ship opens with a blinding light that illuminates the distance between Pidge and the ship. There's someone standing in the doorway, and while they're completely silhouetted to Pidge’s eyes, they cast a long shadow. They're very heavyset, that much Pidge can make out, and they stand upright like humans. Pidge hesitates a moment, and then watches the shadow in front of them move as the alien waves. 

Pidge runs the whole way in a shocking amount of time. Maybe Allura’s insane training regimen is paying off. They aren't even winded.

Normally it’s procedure to get to know someone before boarding their ship-- much safer that way-- but Pidge really doesn't have a choice here and sprints right on board.  
The airlock closes behind them, and Pidge looks around while the door seals and oxygen fills the room. Wait-- is it oxygen? Pidge hasn't even considered the idea that other aliens might not be breathing a human-compatible gas mix. They run a quick check of the composition of the gas in the room with their suit. Diagnostics came back safe for human consumption. 

They release the seal on their helmet and take a deep breath. They’re going to live.

“Thank you so much,” Pidge says, finally turning to the alien, “I'm Pidge.”

The alien is reminiscent of an elephant. It’s large, with a large belly and a large floppy nose and grey-blue skin that fades to pink on its palms and belly. It’s wearing pants, a belt with all sorts of tools, and no other clothes. Pidge quickly notices the blaster at its belt.

“AHIORJFHSKJJFJ,” the alien bellows at them.

Pidge nearly screams in shock. Their ears are ringing!

“Um, hi? Sorry-- I didn't catch that,” Pidge tries again.

The alien rubs its head where it would have ears if it were human. It makes another loud sound, more of a honk.

The door to the ship opens, and another alien sticks their head in. This one looks like an actual alien. A little green man! Well-- it’s white, but otherwise it has the big head and big black eyes that old school movies liked to depict aliens as. Wow! Maybe there’s truth in television after all. 

It says something-- all clicks and chirps and croaking sounds. Why can't Pidge understand them? Are they talking in code?

“I'm Pidge,” Pidge tries again, “thanks for coming for me.”

The big alien gestures at Pidge, talking loudly to the other alien who is hissing and chattering back. They are talking to each other, but Pidge can't understand. Why? They’d all been talking just fine over the radio. Pidge has been able to understand every other alien they'd ever met--

Oh. Oh wait.

It's not like the whole Universe speaks English. It just hasn't occurred to Pidge to ask why they all sound like they do. They've been too excited by everything else to think about that. There has to be a translator somewhere. Something that changes everything Pidge hears into understandable English.

But their suit has power? Why isn't the translator working?

Ok-- figure this out. They met other aliens when they weren't wearing their suit, and talked with Coran and Allura just fine without it. So the translator isn't connected directly to the suit. Does it have anything to do with the Castle?

No, Shiro and them had talked to that alien just fine while looking for Green. Though, he'd sounded pretty weird. Pidge had chalked it up to being foreign but now that they thought about it-- it had sounded more like the alien was speaking through a really bad babelfish. Even Allura and Coran had sounded weird to start-- but after they'd gotten all the Lions then everyone sounded like they were speaking proper--

The Lions! 

Pidge thinks back to that first day, of finding Blue deep underground. While Blue had bonded with Lance, obviously, Pidge could remember a weird buzzing in their head-- in the same part where Green always hums now. Did the Lions provide a translator through a neuro-psychic interface? So cool! But also, a little worrisome. Does that change their brain? Pidge had never exactly signed up to be physically modified by a robot, or even been warned about it. What else don't they know about the Lions?

But if the translator is linked to Green, and Green is down? No translator. Which is going to be trouble. 

Pidge slaps their chest roughly, “Pidge! Pidge Holt,” they declare, and then pull off their helmet to point at their ears, “I don't understand you.”

The real alien-- ok they’re both aliens, yes, but the one from x-files-- comes forwards to look at Pidge’s helmet. Pidge points to the inside of the helmet, and then to their own head, “No translator!” They say slowly. 

Pidge had always made fun of people who were trying to communicate across languages, who just spoke slower in their own language. As if that would help. And now here they are, doing that exact thing. Classic human move.

X-files clicks at the big alien, and made some movements that Pidge assumes are to do with their helmet.

The big guy moves forwards and thumps their chest. It's belly jiggles with the impact.

“AIDHSVSJAKDH,” it declares.

It’s so loud! Pidge is going to have a heart attack before they can find the others. 

Pidge also has no idea what it is saying.

“AIDBAJDHAJDB,” the big guy says again, and then points to Pidge, “PIDGE HOLT. VOLTRON.”

The words are heavily accented, but they are English! Or at least, as good as the big guy can pronounce them.

“Yes! Yes!” Pidge shouts, and jumps on the spot, “I'm Pidge!” 

“AISHDGAHSKDN,” the big guy repeats for a third time, hitting its chest again.

Oh! Pidge realizes. A name! 

“Uwhdhdkohd?” They try. It’s the weirdest sound they've ever made.

The big guy vibrates with excitement, “ALDHDHSHSH,” it says again.

Pidge suckes in a breath, “AISHDGAJSH!” they shout.

The big guy jumps around in excitement, bellowing and shouting. Pidge didn't think it was possible for something so heavy to move so fast. 

They can't help but smile. Okay, communication, they can do this.

X-files chirps, and they go through the same process of learning names. Pidge can’t wait to have the translator back. All of these weird sounds are making them feel tongue-tied.

ANFNJEMSO ushers them further into the ship. The lights aren't as bright as the Castle, and they notice the ship overall is quite run down. But it has a homey, lived-in kind of feel that makes Pidge think of home back on earth. 

Pidge is brought into another room-- a kitchen! Or at least, an area where food is prepared and eaten. There is no oven or anything to cook with that Pidge can see, but it is reminiscent of the kitchen on the castle that Pidge can recognize the general function of it.

A small one-eyed alien is busy plating up some yellow goo. 

ARUENMFSA and Kik-kik make Pidge sit down at the table, and then the plate of yellow goo is set in front of them. The one-eyed alien scrambles into a seat across the table from Pidge and watches them intently. Everyone is watching them.

Months of eating Altean green goo hasn't made it any more appetizing, but Pidge is no longer disgusted by the idea of eating goo. Now it isn't a disappointment to be served a plate of goo, no matter the colour.

Pidge takes a nervous bite and only belatedly has a thought about potentially being poisoned. If this crew wanted to kill them they could have just waited for Pidge to suffocate. 

Pidge takes a bite-- it’s a little sour compared to the regular green goo they were used to-- with a slightly grainier texture too, but it isn't bad and Pidge swallows loudly.

“Yummy,” they offer to the multiple sets of watching eyes, “thank you!” And then, because Pidge is terrible at acting like a normal human being, they gave everyone a thumbs up.

AHUIUIHIUIII hoots loudly and all the aliens launch into excited chatter. Pidge starts wolfing down the goo. Turns out thinking you're about to die for hours and waiting for rescue and also doing patchwork repairs on your Lion really works up an appetite. 

By the time Pidge clears their plate, they've heard their name and ‘Voltron’ thrown around quite a bit. The aliens are probably explaining the situation between each of them. 

“Could, uh, could I have some more?” Pidge asks, tapping on the plate. The conversation stops a moment, all eyes returned to Pidge. They point at the plate and then to their mouth.

The one-eyed alien jumps up and goes for the pre-packaged dried goo. Pidge nods excitedly and gives it a thumbs up.

Kik-kik barks a sharp order and the one-eyed alien pauses. 

Kik-kik and ANZERTSWIFG both lean in. The tone in the room shifts suddenly. Pidge sets down their spoon and sits up straighter. Despite the warm welcome, Pidge has to remember that these are strangers. 

ANZHUINO leans over to tap Pidge’s helmet.

“VOLTRON?” AHUISKDN says.

Pidge nods, “Yes.” And adds another thumbs up. Because they can’t stop being awkward.

The alienest alien looked from one side of the room to the other and spreads out it’s arms, clicking loudly and incessantly. 

“Uh…?” Pidge has no idea.

The one-eyed alien comes back with five of the dried goo packets. They put it on the table and grouped four together and one to the side.

AISHANEMRA makes a noise that sounds a little like an elephant’s trumpet and a little like an explosion. 

“VOLTRON!” AVIWOLANMI leans forwards and taps the single packet and then points towards Pidge. “PIDGE HOLT.” Then it makes a motion around the other packets. “VOLTRON.”

Pidge stares for a second and then snaps their fingers. “You’re asking about the other paladins! Where they are!”

The aliens stares at Pidge and clearly doesn’t understand shit they just said. 

“Hmmm.”

Pidge looks around and finds some clean spoons and counts out three of them. Pidge holds one up. “AIRDGHSH!” They try to pronounce the big guys name, pointing at the spoon and then at the alien in question. Then they put that next to the Pidge-packet. 

Then they hold up another spoon and point at the grey alien to try and get a better idea of it’s name, then ‘kik-kik.’ The alien clicks twice at them and Pidge probably is getting the cadence wrong but makes the best approximation they can by pressing their tongue against their hard palate. This earns them a motion with its head that is almost a nod- so it is probably better to cluck twice than the earlier attempt at pronunciation.’ Pidge puts that spoon with the other one and the Pidge-packet.

Third spoon and Pidge doesn’t even need to point before the one eyed alien bursts out with “Ri!” And then waved their hands and seemed to be correcting themself. “Kidjen! Kidjen!”

“Keygen-keygen.” Pidge says, unable not to tease and adds the last spoon to the pile. “Where AJDKSJESH? Pidge points to the big alien. “There AEHRASH. Where? There.”

The three aliens are quiet, watching Pidge. The big alien waits a second and then taps the four packets with its large nose. “WHERE VOLTRON?”

Pidge realizes they didn’t know how to communicate ‘I have no fucking clue.’

Well. Sometimes you have to cut the gordian knot and pull a Keith. Pidge grabs the four packets and throws them up into the air, and lets them fall to the ground, spreading out their arms. “Where Voltron? Where Pidge?”

The stereotypical alien chatters and the other two turn to them. The one eyed alien walks over to Pidge and says something to them that Pidge doesn’t understand, but hopes is a promise to help. Then Kidjen scoops up the food packets and puts them back on the table.

The spoons are gathered up and gestured towards. “Kidjen, AJEHRSH, [Click-Click].” Pidge nodded. Then Kidgjen tightens their hold so the spoons are closer together. “Rboos.”

“Is that your name as a group?” Pidge asks. Kidjen doesn’t understand the question, obviously, but Pidge thought that sounded right.

Kidjen lays the spoons down and asks AJHRKHRESH something and is handed a blaster after the safety was turned on. Kidjen puts it on the table and points at it. “Galra.” They say clearly.

Pidge wrinkles their nose and gave a thumbs-down because why ruin an awkward thing once you start it. “Got it.”

Kidjen gently bounces the food packets off the weapon a few times. “Voltron shakar Galra.”

Shakar probably means fight. Pidge thumbsed-up.

Kidjen puts the packets to the side and picks up the spoons and taps the blaster with it in the same way. “Rboos shakar Galra.”

Pidge stares for a second and then starts to laugh. “You’re rebels! Oh my god.”

AKLJENRSH snorts and hoots, [Click-Click] chitters and Kidjen bares their (his? He seems like ‘his’ fits better) rounded teeth in what Pidge thinks might be a grin. 

The thumb goes up and Pidge barely even feels dorky for it. Rebels! There’s at least someone else out in the universe who fights the Galra besides Voltron. They don’t just suffer under the Galra, or quietly despise them. They are actively doing something. It was thrilling.

Plus, they probably have more current information on the universe than either Allura or Coran would have, having probably not slept away the last ten thousand years.

Pidge can’t wait until Green is fixed and they can ask ALL the questions of their very interesting new friends.

[Click-Click] chitters and then makes a noise which sounds uncannily like the SOS Pidge had broadcasted.

“What? Oh. Right. Green is… uh. Shit.” Pidge scratches their head. 

So they gather up the food packets again. “Voltron.”

“VOLTRON.” AKDKJENSI repeats, echoed by chittering and Kidjen’s softer noises.

Pidge puts four down on the table and holds up the fourth. “Pidge. Green lion.” Then Pidge mimes the act of tearing the packet in two, though obviously isn’t so crass as to waste food rations. “Broken.”

[Click-Click] tilts their head and the noises they make sound almost like purring but ARRHEHO growls and trumpets at them and they subside, arms crossing in an unhappy seeming way. 

AKJFLKJEE waves their long nose at Kidjen and waves him towards Pidge. “KIDJENEIR SJFKLJEFN PIDGEI HOLTEN FNAND MO-BROKEN VOLTRON-OPER. ERF.” It was nice of AKJKLJEN to use some of the words Pidge has established the meaning of so that Pidge can guess at what AKSJKLJE is saying.

Kidjen swivels his eye from AEHNAHSH to Pidge and then squawks, grabbing a heavy bag and Pidge’s hand, pulling them from the room and towards the airlock - Pidge only really gets what’s happening when the alien boy pulls on a baggy suit of his own, complete with helmet, grabs a bag bulging with tools, and walks them back to their silent, waiting Lion.

It takes a while for them to get things done. But Kidjen is talented at mechanics, and Pidge has soaked up every bit of information about maintaining the Lions that they possibly can. By the time Pidge is too tired to continue, things are looking better. Kidjen has been sticking to the outside, fixing up weak spots and helping make the Green Lion look like it’s been less abused. Pidge has focused on the wiring and practical problems, though the power being drained is still a problem they’re not sure how to fix. They’ve hooked Green up to the ship’s power supply first thing, but Pidge isn’t sure this newer technology is even compatible with the ancient Lion.

Not that “new” is exactly the right word, but when something is more than 10,000 years old, everything is new in comparison.

Kidjen says something that sounds encouraging and pats the Lion’s foot. Then he motions for Pidge to follow him back to the rebel ship, and Pidge obediently complies, taking off their helmet again with relief once they’re inside. Kidjen’s own suit follows suit. They turn away from where Pidge was fed, and shown a short hallway full of doors.

Kidjen pats one. “Pidge,” he says before moving over to pat the door next to it. “Kidjen.” 

Pidge has resigned themself to the dorkiness and gives their new friend a thumbs up. “Got it. Wake me up later to get back to work?” 

Kidjen clearly doesn’t know what Pidge means and starts to say something. Pidge waves at him. “It’s alright. I’m too tired for this. G’night bud.”

“Xa’cros, Pidge.” Probably that was a good night? Pidge grins and goes into the room pointed out for them.

There is a pretty small, pretty bare room here. A padded mattress-type thing, right on the floor. Some kind of bag of bright green jelly. A bar across the ceiling. A button next to a marked out rectangle. When Pidge pressed the button, the floor slid back and reveals a small tub of water. 

“Different ways to sleep. Huh! Cool.” Pidge clicks the button again and let the shine of the water disappear as the tub is covered back up. Pidge kind of wanted to check out the neon green slime, but is also exhausted. Exhaustion wins and Pidge collapses directly onto the mattress.

 

Dreams are strange. Pidge dreams of monsters and blood and aching, aching loneliness.

Well. They’ve had worse dreams. The worse ones are when their brain takes assorted awful things they experience and hear about and insert Dad and Matt into them.

They’d rather dream of teeth and blood of varying shades and the fear of dying alone, so long as it’s just them in the dream and not their lost family.

Pidge turns over in their bed and hums softly to themself. It’s not the noise of the Lion, it’s nowhere close to a purr, but it’s the closest they can do. It’s enough to help them drift back to sleep.

 

In what was probably the morning, Pidge wakes up to the sound of politely quiet noises outside the door. Pidge opens up the floor-tank to use some of the water to clean their face. It helps wake them up. Pidge closes it again, wondering about if it was meant for amphibious aliens. There were so many species out there that they hadn’t met yet!

ANFEKJR’s voice, loud but trying to be quiet, makes itself clear and Pidge snorts, reminded that they are probably trying to figure out how to politely wake them up.

Pidge opens the door, ruffling their own hair to try and make sure it isn’t a total haystack. “Morning AKJNEEHJHS, [Click-Click], Kidjen.”

“Xa’cray, Pidge!” Kidjen chirps, offering Pidge a bowl of probably nutritious sludge. Pidge takes it and starts eating as AMENRKD and [Click-Click] lead the way to the airlock that Kidjen and Pidge will use to exit their small ship. The very stereotypical alien is chittering but looks at Pidge and seems to huff, gesturing to AKFJDSLKFJE.

“GALRA RENT’IA ENPIDGE VOLTRONAR.” The large alien’s nose is swinging from side to side, like a circus elephant from the old times. “VOLTRON ENBROKEN KA, KA.”  
Pidge has no idea and tilts their head to the side. 

Kidjen holds up his two hands. “Pidge.” He waves one hand. “Galra.” He waves another. The Pidge hand moves to the right and the Galra hand follows after. “Galra rent’ia.” 

Oh. They are worried the Galra might follow the signal to them? Or that they already were?

Pidge makes a face and gives them a thumbs down. 

AFNEKJDM makes a hooting sound, but it doesn’t last long. The very long nose stops it’s swaying and points to the Lion. “ENBROKEN KA?” 

“We’ll work on it,” Pidge promises, finishing the bowl of food and putting it on the ground. “C’mon Kidjen.” Pidge grabs his hand, the one that he’d designated to be Pidge, and drags him along to his suit. “Let’s get to work. 

 

Pidge is deep in the guts of the lion, working with a wistful wish that Coran could double-check their work when they hear a low sound like a growl and feel a slight humming under their feet. 

They slide out of the Lion’s side and rush into the cockpit. Lights on. Power is low, but the Lion is drawing it off from the ship now and recharging itself. 

“Oh, Green.” Pidge says, running their hands over the controls. Just having the Lion back on is soothing in a way Pidge can’t really explain. The neurophysical communication with the Lion snaps into place again and it’s like the air had been too thin to breathe properly before. 

That’s silly of course. Their ship was working again and they were just relieved to have fixed it.

“Woah! Look at that!” Pidge hears and - it must be one of the aliens from the ship. So the translator is working! Huh. So it was definitely more about the Lion then it was about Pidge’s paladin armor.

Pidge gets out of the cockpit and looks down and meets the single eye of Kidjen’s gaze. “Kidjen! Do you understand me?”

Kidjen jumps in shock. “Shit! I mean yes! Hi!” 

Pidge laughs and gets to the ground quickly, throwing their arms around Kidjen. “I am so glad! I am so tired of mime!”

Kidjen snorts. “No kidding.” They separate and Kidjen is grinning widely. “Pidge Holt, Paladin of Voltron, I formally welcome you to the Alliance. Now that you understand what we say and everything.”

Pidge cannot hold back their grin either. “You really are a rebellion? Man, that is so awesome!” 

Kidjen studies them carefully, “Why do you make sense suddenly?”

“I think the translator is linked directly into the Lion. It was never really made clear. But no, Kidjen, tell me everything about the Rebellion. We had no idea there was one!” 

“I mean, I’ve only been in the Alliance for less than a year.” Kidjen admits. “Here, let’s keep patching up the outside of the ship while we talk. I’ll tell you what I know and then we’ll go talk to the others. You don’t know where the rest of Voltron is, right?”

Pidge shakes their head as they work alongside Kidjen. “No clue, we were separated in our last fight. I’ll send out a signal once Green’s battery is more charged. You have no idea how much trouble they can get into on their own.”

“You mean like drifting in space with no supplies or power?” Kidjen asks, earning himself an elbow to the side. “Hey!”

“Shut up.”

“Anyways. Went through a wormhole that had been corrupted. We got separated.” Pidge’s grip on the tool they are using tightens before they shake their head and get back to work. “They’ll be fine, I just need to find them.” Now isn’t that a familiar thought.

Kidjen closes his eye for a moment, then looks at Pidge. “I know that feeling.” Clearly looking to change the subject, Kidjen went on. “So, The Arc of Light From a Star Beyond a Planet says that they’ve been to your planet, but they didn’t think your species could get outside your solar system. What happened to get you into Voltron?”

“Who?”

“The Arc of Light From a Star Beyond a Planet?” Pidge concentrates this time, and can just about hear the sound beyond the translated words. It sounds like… two clicks.

“That’s what [Click-Click] means?!” 

Kidjen winces. “Oh geeze, your mispronunciation is even worse with your translator going.” 

“Sorry? Anyways, uh.” Pidge isn’t sure what to think. They scratch their head with the wrench-ish thing Kidjen had provided as a tool. “So, Arc of Light Behind a Planet?”

“The Arc of Light From a Star Beyond a Planet.”

“Right. They’ve been to Earth? We didn’t even know aliens were a thing until- well, until recently.” But…Pidge has to admit that the alien they’ve been thinking of as [Click-Click] does look a lot like the stereotypical little grey men with huge eyes that have been a myth forever.

“Well, they said they were a Skrit when they went, but yeah. Doesn’t surprise me that you guys didn’t know about them, they’re kind of assholes that way. Probably just stole a couple of easily missed samples of your kind for zoos, threw back the ones that didn’t suit, and stole whatever else they thought you wouldn’t miss.”

“Zoos?!”

“Or experiments.” Pidge stares at Kidjen who made a gurgling noise. “They’re assholes, I said that, right? They usually play the neutral party but some of them, like The Arc of Light From a Star Beyond a Planet, get pissed when the Galra fuck them over personally.”

“Huh.” Pidge thinks about that. “What jerks. Anyways, I guess there are some stories about aliens like them, but no one thinks they’re real. It’s part of what started everything with Voltron. Kind of a long story though.” 

Kidjen gestures to the giant lion ship. “We have a lot of repair work to do. And the others are busy trying to hide our signal from the Galra hunting your SOS signal.”

“Shit, they actually are following it? I should help, or-”

“Wait a second, they haven’t actually followed us exactly. They went to this quadrant and keep pinging on the same frequency, looking for another response. We’ve cloaked the area for now.”

“Shit. Sorry.” 

“You needed help. Anyways, if you feel bad, repay us with giving us some stories.” Kidjen grins at Pidge. 

“Alright, alright. Well, basically, my species - humans, in case you’re wondering.”

“I’m a Polifeim.” Kidjen volunteers.

“Cool. We sent out a mission about a year ago to go further than we’ve ever gone before as a species. Three humans went, and they all disappeared.” 

“The Galra?” 

Pidge nods. “Not that we knew it. One of the three came back a year later, but the authorities didn’t believe Shiro. The rest of us Paladins were around when he came back for our own reasons. One thing led to another and we were on the run from our government with Shiro in tow.”

Kidjen blinks his eye slowly. “Uh. Did your government know about the Galra?”

Pidge shoots him a pair of fingerguns. “Probably not!”

“But then why did you run away from them?” Kidjen seems very confused. Poor, naive Kidjen.

“Just because they weren’t working for the Galra doesn’t mean they couldn’t be jerks. Besides, they weren’t listening to Shiro.”

“Okay.” Kidjen rubs his round head and makes a soft chuffing noise. “I guess. Anyways, so all of the Paladins are human?”

“Yep! But we found the last two living Alteans in the universe when we got into space, and they’re kind of our guides to everything.” Pidge pauses and then says. “You think Arc of Light from a Star on a Planet would know where Earth was in relation to here? We kind of… lost track.” That was a good way to say ‘got terribly lost from the beginning and remain so’, in Pidge’s opinion.

“You mean The Arc of Light From a Star Beyond a Planet? Probably not. Like I said, they were a Skrit then, and Skrit are not that smart, usually. Sorry. Maybe they can send out a message to any Na sympathetic to the Alliance?”

“The rest of Voltron is the priority right now.” Pidge says reluctantly, but firmly.

“Right. So, this ‘Shiro’ got away from the Galra?” Kidjen asks curiously. “Not many do that, and mostly they’re kind of fucked up after.”

Pidge shrugs. “Well, Shiro’s not… not fucked up.”

“What did the Galra have him doing? If that’s okay to ask?” 

“Uh-” Pidge stares at the work their hands are doing, fixing dents and making Green whole again. “Fighting, it seems like. He doesn’t remember much. He thinks the other two were sent to the work camps. Does the Alliance know much about those?” 

“Some,” Kidjen says carefully and Pidge’s head jerks up. “Did you know them?

“My father and brother.” Pidge says softly. “They’re the whole reason I agreed to join Voltron in the first place, really. I have to find them.”

Kidjen gurgles a little and then slowly, carefully, puts a hand on Pidge’s shoulder. “My sire was taken a year ago. I know how you feel.”

“I’m sorry,” Pidge says, breathing deep so they don’t cry.

“We’ll find them,” Kidjen tells them fiercely, his grip on their shoulder tightening.

“Yeah. We will.” Pidge promises. “I’ll look for yours too.”

Kidjen grins. “And I’ll look for yours.”

Pidge grabs him up in a tight hug. 

 

The Green Lion is looking better. Still rough around the edges, still not at full strength, but Pidge figures that they can go out into space without much problem.

“Looking good, girl.” Pidge tells her.

“I wish I could see you fight in her, it must be incredible.” Pidge watches Kidjen stare up at the Lion, not blinking his eye for a few long moments. After giving him the basics of Voltron’s origin, Pidge had told him about a few of their battles. It seems like a fair trade for all the help Kidjen has given in patching up the Lion.

“I mean- if we’re welcome in the Alliance, I’m sure you’ll have a chance,” Pidge tells him.

“Welcome? Hah! Even if Voltron wasn’t literally right out of childhood stories, we’re always looking for more allies.” Kidjen shakes his head anyways, reaching out and touching the Lion’s hull. “No, I still won’t. I’m young and have mechanical skills - they keep me back on board doing repairs, not where I can see the fights or help with piloting or firing. Plus they think being worried about my sire might make me do something… stupid.” 

“Oof. That’s hard.” Pidge grimaces and rakes their hand through their hair. “They didn’t tell me anything back home after my brother and dad vanished. Maybe it was because I was young. Maybe it’s because they thought I was a girl.” Kidjen grinds his teeth and Pidge flashed him a smile. “But that’s why I dressed like a boy and tricked my way into their training grounds. Gave me a better chance to steal information and machinery to make some devices to try and listen to space.”

“What?” Kidjen asks blankly. Pidge misinterpreted the confusion.

“Well, transmissions in space. I actually locked onto some Galra signals, which is when we found out Shiro was on his way.” Pidge can tell Kidjen is still confused. “Oh- the gender thing? I’m genderqueer, not really either.”

“No, I could tell that much. You built your own transmission scanner while spying on your own government?”

“I guess?” Pidge shrugs. “I don’t like getting isolated from what I want to know.”

“No kidding.” Kidjen shakes his head. “Humans are all like you?”

“Eh, we’re a mixed bag.”

“I have to meet the rest of Voltron sometime,” Kidjen says, then laughs when Pidge gives him a thumbs up. 

Red lights begin to pulsate from Kidjen’s pocket, and he pulls out a small device, square, with several buttons and lights on it. He presses one and a tinny, clearly frightened voice can be heard. “The Galra have locked onto your ships signal and have issued a command to stop and be searched. We’re sending a few more ships to your quadrant, but you need to get out of there or X’Hal protect you.”

“X’Hal?” Pidge asks, quickly packing the tools they and Kidjen have been using back into the bag they’d come from.

“Salja is from the Vega system, they worship her there. X’Hal is a frightening goddess, make sure you’re respectful if you ever run into her.” Kidjen informs Pidge as they start running for the rebel ship. “I have to make sure the others heard the message, c’mon!”

In the sky, purple shooting stars winked and got bigger and bigger. Pidge shivered and ran faster.

Kidjen left them in the airlock and they heard shouting and clanging as things got done.

Kidjen returned, looking harassed. “We’ll hitch the Lion and try to escape. Then we should go back to our rooms, they’re fortified and will break off into a life raft if the ship is too damaged.”

Pidge looked at Kidjen, and then at the Green Lion. Slowly, they started to grin.

“...Why does that expression worry me?” Kidjen asked slowly.

 

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!”

“Kidjen, stop screaming! I thought you wanted to see some of the action?”

“I didn’t mean from inside VOLTRON!”

Pidge snorts and turns on the invisibility booster. “Relax. Sometimes you have to pull a Keith to get what you want.”

“What?”

“You’ll get it when you meet the other paladins. Look- tell the others that we’re going to attack the Galra and cover their escape. Then we’ll meet up with them once we’ve either beaten the Galra or escaped them ourselves.”

Kidjen muttered into his communication device and listened to the response. Pidge made out some of the words but was focused on sneaking up on the huge Galra ship that was barreling towards the rebel ship that had been Pidge’s saviour.

“Fighter-Sue says that your help is appreciated, and if you cover their retreat and don’t get me killed, they’d be delighted.” The Polifeim reports. 

“On it.” Pidge nods, and the Lion moves. “The invisibility cloaking won’t last much longer so let’s make it count. Hold on tight, Kidjen!”

Nimbly, they get into position, keeping pace with the Galra ship. It’s twice the size of the ship it’s headed for, and Pidge knows how deadly the weapons onboard could be.

The rebel ship fires up and moves. 

The Galra ship stops for a moment to change direction and that’s when Green drops the cloaking and pounces. The Lion’s mouth opens and the cannon fires, ripping through the section of the ship that contained the power stores for the onboard weaponry on the last ship Pidge was able to examine.

Pidge found themself grinning at Kidjen’s whoops of exhilaration at seeing the cannon rip through the enemy ship’s hull.

“Yeah! Hell yes!” 

“We’re not done yet, buddy!” Pidge has the Lion whirl and they flee - in the opposite direction from the rebel ship.

Pidge can almost hear the the Galra’s ships pilot disregard the ship it first targeted. One thing almost all Galra have had in common so far: they’re willing to do almost anything to be the one to capture even one part of Voltron.

“Are you- you’re baiting them to follow you?!” Kidjen exclaimed. Pidge looked over at him and tried not to laugh. 

“Green’s got it. Don’t you, girl?”

If Kidjen looked awed by the answering rumble from the ship, Pidge didn’t notice - the Galra ship was on their ass and it was time to motor.

They ran, they stopped. It wouldn’t do to go too slow and deal with the Galra ship catching them, but they also couldn’t outpace them before they were sure that the Rebel ship was in the clear.

Pidge was scared sometimes during fights, and they could tell that Kidjen was kind of scared now. But after the terror of being alone in space for so long… well, being with a friend and safe inside a powered-up Lion made one lousy Galra ship firing weapons that were rapidly losing their bite seem like nothing at all.

“Think our friends are far enough away now?” Pidge asked as they passed a blue-and-purple planet, having Green dodge another blast from the ship. 

“They better be!” 

“Right.” Pidge didn’t want to trigger the cloaking again, so they just had Green wheel around and pounce, knocking the Galra ship off it’s course with an almost contemptuous sweep of it’s claws. 

The ship rose up and it seemed that someone had realized the weapons were out of power. Pidge knew that because the ship tried to ram them.

“PIDGE!” Kidjen shouted in alarm. His feet were up on the seat and he seemed to try to curl up in a ball pre-emptive to the strike. 

“I know!” Pidge replied. “Wait for it!”

Pidge held position to the last second and then pulled up sharply, getting just out of the way and had the Lion kick out with it’s back legs. The momentum the Galra ship had already put in, plus the momentum Pidge added was just enough to get it pulled into the gravitational pull of the planet Pidge had noticed earlier, purple with blue oceans and an unusually strong gravity. 

“That was awesome.” Kidjen breathes, and Pidge glances over their shoulder and bursts out laughing at both of their new friend’s hands giving them thumbs up.

 

After the Lion reaches the rebel ship and connects itself with the ship, Pidge and Kidjen tumble out of the Lion and into the rebel ship, exchanging breathless ideas.

“I think you could double the time for the invisibility shields if you tried using some Xantham boosters!”

“Where could I find those? I experimented with Q’adros but-”

“On Kyala! Oh, if you do use Xantham boosters, you’ll get the best effect with Vorpal-”

“PIDGE-WARRIOR! KIDJEN-CHILD!” Booms a new voice and Pidge’s head jerks up. The Arc of- The Light Behind a- damnit, [Click-Click] and AERUNDAI are standing in the hangar. 

It was clearly the latter who’d spoken, as he’s charging forwards, picking up Kidjen and holding him in the air.

‘Fussy-Sue, put me down!” Kidjen insists, skin flushing a dull blue. 

“You went into battle without asking, knowing we have been placed with your care in the short term.” The Na says, tilting it’s head to the side ever so slightly. “That you were in company of a Paladin of Voltron doesn’t change that.”

“It’s not Kidjen’s fault, he was a big help actually!” Pidge says hurriedly. 

“DON’T WORRY FRIENDLY-PIDGE, IMPULSIVE-KIDJEN ISN’T IN SERIOUS TROUBLE, JUST IN ENOUGH.” Kidjen is placed back on the ground and the elephantine alien smacks it’s limbs together. “YOUR HELP WAS MOST WELL-TIMED, PALADIN-PIDGE, AND WE THANK YOU.” 

Pidge laughs a little and rubs their head. “Hey, you guys got me and Green out of a real bad patch, and we were happy to help.”

“It’s nice to hear you speak sensibly.” The Arc of Light From a Star Beyond a Planet observes. “No matter how amusing your mispronunciations were, clear communication is a blessing.”

“Haha… we muddled along. Can I clarify your names now that there’s some translation thing going on? You’re… Arcing Light Behind a Planet, right?” Pidge asks a bit sheepishly. 

Mostly it’s the Na’s partner they wanted to confirm the name of since it seems to be changing a lot, just like the pronunciation had throughout Pidge’s time on this ship.

“The Arc of Light From a Star Beyond a Planet.” The Na corrects, blinking it’s large dark eyes on it. “I’ve heard humans have trouble with our names, so I will permit you to call me Arc. It’s better then you mangling my full name.”

“How much do you know about humans? How do you? Kidjen said you might have been to earth when you were young? Have you seen any other humans?” Pidge can’t quite control the burst of questions.

“Not much. I wasn’t younger, I was a Skrit, so there wasn’t a lot I took in there.” The Na lifts it’s slim shoulders slightly.

“Did-” Pidge starts on the next question, but is interrupted by the other alien making a loud chuffing noise. 

“SO INQUISITIVE, QUESTION-PIDGE! I THOUGHT YOU WANTED MY NAME.”

“I- right, yes, sorry.” Pidge goes a bit red. 

“I AM RELIEVED-SUE. IT IS FINE, I JUST DID NOT WANT US TO GET TOO SIDETRACKED.” 

“Does… your name change all the time?” Pidge asks slowly.

“Not really. Their name is just different depending on how you feel about them, or the situation, or what they’re doing, or how they feel, or your relationship.” Kidjen explains. “You have been calling Old-Sue some really funny things.”

“Oh no.” Pidge says, covering their face with a hand.

“IT IS FINE, YOUNG-PIDGE. I FOUND YOUR ACCIDENTAL WIT QUITE HILARIOUS. I’VE NEVER BEEN CALLED SUCH THINGS LIKE DELICATE-SUE OR QUADRUPED-SUE OR SUE-THE-BEAUTIFUL.”

“Well, that’s not so bad.” Pidge reasons, lifting their face up hopefully. Sue-Of-The-Many-Names is clearly not a quadruped species, but for noises that Pidge was just parroting back as best they could, it at least wasn’t that rude.

“There were other things, but Tactful-Sue doesn’t want to tell you that you called them the parent-of-all-evil-sue.” Kidjen mutters with a snicker.

“Oh god.” Pidge buries their face in both hands. “I’m worse than Lance.”

“Is that another Paladin?” Arc asks. “We’d like to hear more about the current Paladins. What species are they?”

“They’re all human!” Kidjen volunteers. “But they have two of the Old Ones with them, showing them the technology and the use of Voltron and guiding them!” 

“I don’t know where they are,” Pidge says, thinking of their friends and losing some of the energy they’d been full of just a moment ago. “I need to find them. I can’t- I’m not losing anyone else.”

Kidjen grabs Pidge’s hand. “I have an idea.” Pidge looks at him and Kidjen pulls on the arm and leans forwards, letting their foreheads gently bonk together. “You won’t lose them.”

“Thanks,” Pidge whispers, throat feeling scratchy and hot, something behind their eyes burning.

Kidjen closes his eye, keeping the forehead contact for a moment, and then lets Pidge go. “I’ll be right back.”

As he scrambles away, Arc holds out a small device. “Once you find them, we’d be honoured if Voltron would join the ranks of the Alliance.” Pidge takes it carefully. “This has the coordinates of our main base. If you come there, we will welcome you, and you can meet with Leader Slavka and the Council to officially join with us.’

“SLAVKA-BITCH WILL BE VERY EXCITED.” Rude-Sue volunteers, getting a definite Look from their Na compatriot. “WHAT? SHE’S A BITCH, IT’S WHY SHE’S GOOD AT HER JOB.”

Arc doesn’t seem able to argue the fact. “Especially since her- well. It’s hard for us all.” 

Was there no one in the galaxy who had a past without tragedy? Pidge is starting to doubt it.

“I can’t speak for us all, but I can’t imagine that anything could stop us from joining.” Pidge grins at them.

Sue-Friend makes a muffled trumpeting noise that sounds very much like a fart. “YOU’VE JINXED IT NOW, COCKY-PIDGE. YOU’LL END UP FIGHTING HUNDREDS OF GALRA BEFORE YOU REACH US. SOMETHING ALWAYS GOES WRONG WHEN YOU SAY THAT KIND OF THING.”

Pidge’s grin turns to a smirk and they give them a thumbs up. “We’ll get to you.”

Kidjen comes back with a bag crammed full of machinery. “I know I was talking about this stuff helping the invisibility, but I think you could use it to amplify your Lion’s ability to track the others! I have Vorpal metal and Xantham boosters. Wanna go experiment with ancient semi-mystical technology?”

“Do I?!” 

Pidge and Kidjen scramble back into the Lion as Arc and Concerned-Sue exchange nervous glances.

“We need to give both of them a talk about safety, don’t we?”

“DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT WILL STOP EITHER OF THEM, HANDSOME-THE ARC OF LIGHT FROM A STAR BEYOND A PLANET?”

“I suppose not.”

 

A few hours later, Pidge is standing in the hangar of the Resistance ship they had left so recently, hearing the sweet sound of the Green Lion’s computational system confirming that they are locked onto the signal of the other four Lions.

Their new friends had loaded them down with spare ration packs, spare repair tools, and a few large batteries, just in case.

“FRIEND-PIDGE AND FRIEND-KIDJEN!” Sentimental-Sue grabs them both in a bear hug.

“Suffocator-Sue!” Kidjen whines loudly.

“I WILL MISS SEEING YOUR BLOSSOMING FRIENDSHIP.” 

“The Arc from a Star Beyond a Planet, make them stoooooop!” Kidjen wriggles, trying to pull away.

“Overly-Emotional-Sue.” The Na says quietly. 

The hug tightens for a moment and then lets them go, Crying-Sue trumpets a little sadly. “IT WAS GOOD TO MEET YOU, CHILD-PIDGE. STAY SAFE IN THE STARS AND COME TO US AGAIN.”

“Thanks, Friend-Sue.” Pidge can’t think of a better descriptor than friend for the large, kind alien. Hunk and Sue-Friend really have to meet sometime. They’d get on like a house on fire.

“You keep those coordinates safe.” Arc reminds them, towing Sorrowful-Sue backwards.

“I will. Thank you.”

Then it was just Kidjen and Pidge and Pidge smiles at him. “We’ll meet again. I’ll watch for your sire.”

“I’ll watch for your brother and father,” Kidjen says softly back. “Travel safely.”

Kidjen half turns away, and Pidge catches his arm. Around the sides of the one eye, there are light blue tears. “Hey.” Pidge leans in and touches their forehead to Kidjen’s. “I have the coordinates. We have a picture of each other’s families. This is a see you later, not a goodbye.” 

Kidjen relaxes with the light touch of foreheads. “Yeah. You go kick some Galra butt and find your friends.” Kidjen pulls back and arranges his fingers into a thumbs up position before backing away a little.

“You keep Arc and Friendly-Sue safe, and get your butt either in a ship or improving them to kick just as much butt,” Pidge says, giving the same gesture back. “You’re too good to do nothing but repair work.”

Pidge gets back into the Green Lion and waves at their three new friends, who wave back excitedly. Then the Lion makes a soft noise and launches into space, choosing the signal to follow and heads that way. 

Space is a lot less lonely when you know where your friends are.

**Author's Note:**

> Then Pidge finds everyone! And then It Was Your Heart On The Line happens. Hope you enjoyed reading this, please review and if you wanna talk to us, we're both on Tumblr! Demenior is the same on Tumblr and I'm krakendra.


End file.
